A Soldier's Redemption (16 page)

“No.” The word came out Cory's mouth almost before she was aware of it.

Everyone looked at her.

“No one is going to risk their life for me. Absolutely not.”

“Cory,” Wade started to say.

“No.” The determination that filled her now was unshakable. “Don't you see? I have enough to live with. I couldn't live with it if someone was hurt or killed in my place. What's more, I think I need to do this. I need to face this guy. I'll never be free of fear again unless I do this.” She wondered if she could even convey how strongly she felt that this was something she had to do to lay to rest some of her demons for good. How could you explain that you had run long enough, and now it was time to stand your ground?

But instead of endless argument, she was surprised because all three of them seemed to understand what she was trying to say.

“Okay,” Gage said, and Wade nodded, albeit with obvious reluctance. “We'll set up an ambush. Since I want Cory in armor, we need to set it up to occur at night when she can reasonably wear a jacket to conceal the armor. I'm thinking the supermarket parking lot. It would be reasonable for Cory to leave work a half hour or so after the store is closed, and to leave apparently alone. Yet there are plenty of places around where we can conceal ourselves. There are always cars out there overnight for example. A Dumpster. Some trees. Rooftops. The trick will be making sure we don't pick a hiding place that Ordano would choose.”

Wade spoke. “Give me a thousand-yard sight line, and I won't miss.”

Gage's head tilted a bit. “Are you asking me to deputize you?”

“If it'll make this work better. At least make sure I'm on a roof somewhere with an unhindered sight line. In case.”

Cory shuddered helplessly at what he was proposing. She didn't want him to have that on his conscience because of her. She didn't think she could stand it.

Sara spoke. “Micah's a trained sniper, too.”

“So put both of us out there. It'll reduce the number of people you need on the ground, and thus reduce the number of people who might give us away.”

Gage nodded slowly. “Okay. I like it. I'll go set it up, and give Moran his story to pass along. I'll see if I can't get him to do it in a way that'll push Ordano to move quickly. We can't afford to give him a lot of time to plan.”

Cory spoke through stiff lips. “If what happened that night he came after my husband is any indication, he's not one for a lot of planning. He may be good at covering his tracks, but there were so many other times he could have gotten Jim when he was alone…” Her voice broke. “He didn't have to come into the condo when we were both there.”

“Good point,” Wade said, squeezing her hand gently. “The guy's an opportunist, and a bit careless. He chose an easy way to get at your husband at a time when escape would also be easy, with no one out and about to notice him. And he didn't care about collateral damage, obviously.”

He paused a moment, then added, “This Ordano may think of himself as an assassin, but I'd give him low marks. My bet is he's an ordinary thug who took the job for money, and that he doesn't have a whole lot of experience.”

Cory looked at him. “How could you know that?”

“Because I would have done it cleaner, and you wouldn't have been around.”

The words chilled Cory, but she looked into those dark eyes of his, and she saw a whisper of the pain he felt because he had been required to do such things in his past. She ached for him, for the burdens he carried in silence, for the duty that had scarred him. It raised him even higher in her estimation that he couldn't shrug off such things, that she could see the ghosts in his gaze.

“All right,” she said, as if everything had been settled. “Just tell me where to be, and when, and exactly what you want me to do. But let me make it perfectly clear, I will not let anyone take the risk in my place. I cannot live with that. I will not live with that.”

Gage sighed and nodded. “I get it, Cory. And sometimes we have to face our demons head-on. It's the only way to be free.”

That was it in a nutshell. It didn't mean that she'd sleep any better until this was over. It didn't mean her heart would stop galloping.

But she had to stand up for herself. Now. This time. No matter the cost.

 

Gage and Sara left like a couple, arms linked, heads bowed together and talking as they walked down the street a little way to Sara's battered pickup. Keeping up the pretense, just in case.

Just in case.

The words seemed to hang in her mind like smoke long after a fire has burned out. They had to assume that Moran was Ordano's only information source, but they had to assume at the same time that he was not. No chances, no unnecessary risks.

And Cory felt as if the house were closing in on her, just as those safe houses had a year ago. Only now that she had lost it completely did she realize just how much freedom she had exercised in the past year despite her fear. Freedom to run to the store. Freedom to sit in her backyard on a warm evening. Simple things, but huge in their absence.

“We'll take care of this soon,” Wade told her. They were both pacing like caged animals, which might have amused her at another time. Right now it wasn't even remotely funny.

“What if he gets away?”

“He won't.”

She faced him. “You can't promise that.”

He stilled, becoming as motionless as a statue. “If he gets away, I promise you I will hunt him to the ends of the earth. He will not escape me.”

Her chest tightened and began to ache. She reached out and seized his hand, clutching it between both of hers. “No, Wade. Promise me you won't do that. I couldn't stand it. I couldn't bear you to turn into that kind of hunter for me.”

His gaze remained hard. “It wouldn't be the first time.”

“Maybe not. But you've already done it for the last time. Promise me you won't do that for me. You've already served your time and done your duty. Now…now is for building, not destroying. Promise me, please.”

His gaze never wavered. “I can't.”

Then he turned from her and resumed his pacing.

Oh, God! She stood still, watching him, knowing there was not a thing she could say or do. This man would do his duty, however he perceived it, and that was that.

The only question was if she would accept it. Accept
him. As he was. As he had been. As he might have to become again.

And somewhere deep inside, she knew she already had.

W
ade figured at most two days. His reasoning was straightforward. If Ordano was anywhere in the vicinity, he would move fast. Probably the very next night when Cory went to work. If he was halfway across the country, he might take another day.

“But no longer,” he said. “This guy wants the threat removed, the faster the better.”

Gage agreed.

Cory went to work at her usual time. Her shift seemed to drag. Gage had talked to her boss, so arrangements had been made so that Cory would leave the locked store alone at about a half hour past closing, while others remained inside, out of sight.

Even though she worried about the other employees, Cory was grateful that she would not have to spend that hour alone in an empty store, locked though it would be. Gage felt the presence of the other employees would
prevent Ordano from trying to break in and take her out inside the store.

They were doing everything they could to ensure the attack happened in the parking lot. And all they wanted her to do was go in the back room, put on the body armor, pull her jacket over it, then leave the store. And if she saw Ordano, all they asked was that she drop to the ground and roll. Making herself small. Getting herself out of the way.

Walking bait. Exposing herself completely. Her skin crawled in anticipation, and as the hour grew closer, her heart accelerated and her stomach filled with nervous butterflies. She must have made a dozen trips to the fountain to ease the dryness in her mouth, but it only returned minutes later.

She knew the deputies were out there. She knew Wade was on some rooftop, deputized at least for a few days.

But worst of all was the way Wade had withdrawn again, turning into the stony man she had first met. No smile lightened his dark eyes. No unnecessary word passed his lips. He was gone from her as surely as if he had left town.

That hurt. It hurt so much that she now would have new baggage to deal with if she survived the next few days: the baggage of having fallen in love with a man who could shut her out as surely as if he had closed a door and locked it.

And she hurt for him, for the places this must be taking him back to, for all the memories it must be evoking. Right or wrong, duty or not, no soldier survived without scars. And every single one of his must have been ripped open by having to once again slip into the role he had chosen to protect her: Sniper. Killer. Hunter.

God, she almost wished Ordano had found her before
Wade ever appeared. She couldn't stand the thought of what he must be dealing with now.

The hour came at last. Her heart climbed into her throat as she looked at Betsy, her manager. The woman nodded, her face conveying fear and sorrow.

“Be careful.”

Cory nodded. She went to the back room, climbed into the body armor and jacket then headed for the front door.

Betsy had given her a key so she could lock the door as she left. Gage didn't want to risk anyone else being visible through all that glass, because Ordano had proved he didn't care who he shot in addition to taking out his target.

The hair on the back of her neck was standing on end as Cory stepped out into a night that seemed strangely chilly for summer. Her entire back prickled with the sense of being watched as she turned and locked the front door from the outside.

But of course there were a dozen eyes on her right now, at the very least. Wade and Micah on the rooftops somewhere. Other deputies hiding in cars or elsewhere. Gage hadn't shared the details, nor did she especially want to know them.

Maybe those were deputies she spied sitting on the sidewalk in front of the pizza place four doors down, looking like two drunks sharing a bottle, totally ragged and sharing a torn blanket. How would she know?

They certainly sounded drunk, and argued over who had drunk the most of the bottle they passed between them.

Slowly she began to cross the parking lot. Per direction, she had left her car at the farthest end so she would have a longer walk. Giving Ordano more opportunity.

There were a half dozen other cars in the lot. Some probably occupied by deputies. All appearing empty.
She'd been ordered to avoid walking anywhere near any of them. Stay in the open. Stay away from those places of concealment.

Step after step she walked, her legs feeling like lead, her heart beating so loud she couldn't hear much else. Wandering a little to avoid the cars. Making loose shopping carts her excuse for the meandering walk, giving the attacker more opportunity to approach. Trying to make it necessary for him to leave his vehicle. If he was in one.

She glanced around again, but could see no heads in any of the cars. And of course, there was her own Suburban, a threat in itself, although she was sure it had been watched continuously since her arrival. She doubted anyone could have managed to hide himself in or around it.

At least, she had to believe that.

Another step. Grabbing another cart and shoving it toward a corral. Annoy the man, Gage had said. Make him impatient.

Well, there were certainly enough forgotten carts out here to help her do that.

She began to shiver, though she couldn't possibly be cold. Her legs went from lead to rubber, and she began to wonder if she would be able to make it all the way to her car.

Another cart. Turn around and walk it back. She clung to it for support even as she pushed it.

How had Wade lived like this for so long? She didn't think she could stand it for another ten minutes.

Maybe it wouldn't happen tonight. She was getting closer to her car, farther from the two guys sitting out in front of the pizza place. More isolated with every step.

“There you are.”

She didn't recognize the voice. She froze, her fear ratcheting up to full-blown terror. Stiffly, she turned.

She recognized the face the instant she saw it. It was him. And he was pointing a gun at her from within the confines of a loose jacket. “You!” She gasped the word as she looked into a face that had haunted her nightmares.

“We're going to take a ride,” he said. “A nice little ride, just the two of us.”

That gun was pointed straight at her. Fear clouded her brain for a few seconds. Paralyzing her, making her forget what she was supposed to do.

“Move it,” he said, his voice low and threatening.

But she couldn't move. Then, almost automatically, like any person faced with a gun, she started to obey.

No! The word shrieked in her brain. Drop and roll away. Drop and roll away.

For a few seconds she didn't think she'd be able to. It was as if her body had become a statue. But she might be blocking the sight line they had warned her about. And how would they know this was the guy if she didn't drop and roll? That was their signal that this was the one.

All of a sudden Wade's face popped into her mind. Somehow, thinking of him reminded her that she was capable. Not merely a frightened mouse, but a capable woman.

 

From his rooftop, Wade watched the encounter. He couldn't tell from the way Cory was acting if this was the guy, or just somebody who wanted to ask for directions. She stood there, still but yet standing, not doing the one thing they had told her to do.

Looking through the scope on the sniper rifle Gage had given him, he couldn't see enough. Cory blocked part of his view. And he couldn't shoot unless he was sure.

Damn!

He held his breath, hoping he didn't watch her get
murdered while he dithered about whether the target might not be the right guy. But he couldn't shoot until he was sure.

He glanced across the way to another rooftop where Micah lay, triangulating on the parking lot. The man seemed undecided, too.

Not enough info. He looked through his scope again, focusing, trying to see some defining detail. Only long experience kept him calm, his heartbeat steady. Forget it's Cory, he told himself. Don't let emotions get involved.

Stay calm. Steady breaths, finger on trigger, waiting.
Become ice.

Then the two deputies in front of the pizza place started arguing loudly, in slurred voices. The man facing Cory turned just a bit. And Cory dropped to the ground.

It was him.

He held his breath and began to squeeze. But before he got off his shot, the loud pop of Micah's rifle pierced the night.

The guy dropped like a marionette whose strings had been cut. Wade waited, keeping a bead on him as the two “drunks” dropped bottle and blanket and charged across the lot toward Cory.

Only when they got there, and he could see through his scope that they kicked the guy's gun away and bent to cuff him, did Wade ease off on the trigger.

An explosive breath escaped him and he rolled over on his back, staring up at the star-studded heavens.

Thank God. Thank God.

Then the night erupted with colored lights and the sounds of sirens.

He could only lie there drained, thanking God. But a minute later, the adrenaline hit and he was up. He had to get to Cory.
Now.

 

Cory was on her feet by the time Wade came charging up. Shaking from head to foot, she was staring down at the man who had killed her husband. It seemed he was still alive. She didn't know how she felt about that.

But then Wade's arms closed around her, and she was sure she had never felt anything more wonderful in her life. She sagged into his embrace and said his name over and over.

“Are you okay?” he demanded, clutching the back of her head and pressing her tightly to his chest.

She managed a nod.

Gage's voice reached her. “Take her home, Wade. We'll talk after I take care of this creep.”

There wasn't an ounce of protest in her, and this time she didn't at all mind when Wade scooped her off her feet and carried her to her car. She hated it only when he let go of her after putting her in the passenger seat and buckling her in.

But when he climbed in beside her, and had turned over the ignition and shifted into gear, he reached over and grabbed her hand as if he were afraid it might slip away.

He carried her into the house, too. And this time when he turned off the alarm, he didn't turn it back on. No need now. From somewhere deep inside, a smile nearly rose to her lips. No more living in fear.

Wade stripped her of her jacket and the armor, then wrapped her chilled body in a blanket and settled her on the couch. “You need something hot to drink. Coffee? Something to eat?”

She doubted she could eat a thing. She still felt adrift, apart, as if she didn't quite belong in the here and now. “Coffee,” she managed.

He went to start a pot, but came back immediately to sit
beside her, wrap her in his powerful arms and rub her to stimulate circulation. “Do you feel dizzy? Weak? Maybe you're in shock.”

“I'm fine.” Slowly, but surely, she realized she was. By the time the coffee was ready and he returned with two mugs, she actually smiled at him.

“I did it,” she said.

And slowly, slowly, he smiled back, leaving the stony Wade behind, maybe for good. “You certainly did.”

And for that moment, it was enough.

 

They cuddled throughout the night. First on the couch, then in her bed. Not making love, just cuddling and hugging. Little talking even, but as dawn began to lighten the world beyond the windows, Cory felt something she hadn't felt in a long time.

Pride. And exhilaration. She had done it. She had faced the killer. She had helped catch him.

It was her final act for Jim and their baby. The best memorial she could give them. But it was also the first act in her new life.

She bounded out of bed, and headed for the kitchen to make a huge breakfast, feeling hungry for food, but also hungry for life.

Wade followed, muttering something about a woman who didn't know when she had it good in a warm bed, but she laughed at his grumpiness until he laughed, too.

Oh, it was so good to hear him laugh. So good to feel like laughing.

She made mounds of scrambled eggs and hash browns, poured tall glasses of orange juice. And when they sat to eat, Wade said something that made her feel as light as a helium balloon.

“I'm so proud of you.”

From him, that meant a whole lot. “I'm pretty proud of me, too.”

“You should be.”

She grinned at him and was thrilled when he grinned back.

“You make a mean hash brown, lady.”

“Anytime.” It felt good to cook for him, good to be doing something for someone else again. At the back of her mind lurked a little rain cloud, warning that there was no permanence here, that Wade would inevitably move on once he had settled whatever he had come here to settle with himself. But she didn't want to think about that now.

No, she was willing to toss her heart over the moon, and take the pain later, because it felt so good to be truly alive again, and life was nothing at all if you wouldn't take risks. A lesson she had learned all too well over the past year.

After they cleaned up, they took a walk together, and for the first time in forever, Cory noticed all the beauty around her, from the birdsong to the ceaseless breeze that whispered through the old tress lining the street. For the first time in a long time, she noticed that life was all around her.

Later they dozed for a while on the couch, for they'd been up most of the night, but then Gage dropped by, and the first of many questions got answered.

“Ordano is in the hospital under guard. The Marshals arrived this morning and the FBI will be here in a little while. The guy started talking as soon as he came out of anesthesia. If you care, Cory, we now know who hired him to kill your husband. And we know who gave you away.”

“Who?”

“A secretary in the Marshals' office. All it took was some
sweet-talking, some wine and a few dinners to convince her she was in love with the creep. She managed to find out where you'd been placed and passed the information to him, but nothing else. She didn't have access to begin with so she shouldn't have even been able to learn that much.”